This invention relates generally to the field of internal combustion igniters and, more particularly, to an ignition system monitoring assembly for industrial gas turbine engines.
Power for many applications may be generated by harnessing energy from the products of combustion. One type of machine that harnesses this energy is the combustion engine. Industrial gas turbine engines, internal combustion engines, and jet aircraft engines are all examples of this type of machinery. Each of these machines burns some sort of fuel and converts the chemical energy stored in the fuel into mechanical energy to create electricity, produce thrust, or otherwise do work. To this end, combustion engines include components that initiate and sustain the burning of fuels provided by an associated fuel supply.
In the industrial gas turbine environment, igniters are used to provide an electrically-charged arc that causes fuel introduced by injection nozzles to combust, beginning the power generation process. Faulty igniters will impede engine performance, and can actually prevent an entire engine from starting. In single-igniter systems, a faulty igniter may be relatively-easy to diagnose, but in larger engines, with multiple igniters, this analysis can be quite difficult.
Since industrial gas turbine equipment is often used to provide electricity to municipalities, failure of this equipment can be disastrous, resulting in widespread power outages and a multitude of downstream effects. It is important, therefore, to ensure the proper operation of igniters and the other components associated with combustion engine ignition systems. To this end, various monitoring systems have been developed.
Several devices, including solid state analysis circuits connected to ignition equipment, igniters with integrated pressure sensors, and even ionization detection components help monitor various aspects of ignition systems. However, while these devices allow ignition and combustion system analysis, with varying degrees of success, they have shortcomings. Many of the systems are quite complex and can add considerably to the expense of a given engine. Others arrangements are machine-specific and must be installed during initial engine assembly, eliminating their applicability as a choice for retrofit equipment. Others systems are simply inaccurate, erroneously indicating not only combustion initiating arcs, but also voltage drops that have simply been caused by short circuits within the igniter.
Accordingly, a need exists in the art for a monitoring assembly that allows positive optical confirmation of igniter arc production. The assembly should accommodate a variety of designs and be capable of use within previously-installed equipment without extensive modification of existing components. Additionally, the assembly should allow real-time monitoring of several preselected locations simultaneously. The assembly should additionally allow collection of an array of information from one or several locations for archival and/or engine control purposes.
The instant invention is an ignition system monitoring assembly that allows positive indication of spark production by a combustion engine igniter. The assembly includes an igniter adapted to produce an arc sufficient to begin combustion of supplied fuel. A positioning guide associated with the igniter will hold and maintain a signal-transferring transmittal member with respect to the igniter. A reception member is optically linked with an igniter spark gap target region via the transmittal member and thus receives optical information from the transmittal member. More than one transmittal member may be used, and other locations may be monitored. The reception member may allow unaided observation of the target region or other locations and may produce electronic or other output based upon the signal transferred by the transmittal member. The monitoring assembly may also include a processing device operatively associated with the reception member for signal recording or manipulation; the processing device may also be linked to engine control equipment to facilitate real-time engine management.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a monitoring assembly that allows positive visual confirmation of igniter arc production. It is also an object of the present invention to provide a monitoring assembly that accommodates a variety of designs and can be used within previously-installed equipment without extensive modification of existing components. It is still a further object of the present invention to provide a monitoring assembly that allows real-time monitoring of several preselected locations simultaneously. An additional object of the present invention is to provide a monitoring assembly that allows collection of information from one or several locations for archival and/or engine control purposes.
Other objects and advantages of this invention will become apparent from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings wherein are set forth, by way of illustration and example, certain embodiments of this invention. The drawings constitute part of this specification and include exemplary embodiments of the present invention and illustrate various objects and features thereof.